Let's say that the government office responsible for dispensing funding for scientific research has hired you to decide what three research topics will get the most support over the next five years? What research topics would you fund?
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If you were in charge of funding research...
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 MadArchitect |
If you were in charge of funding research... |
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Posts: 3169 09/09/07 14:05:02 Indisputable BookTalk Master |
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Chris OConnor |
If you were in charge of funding research... | #1 | ||
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Indisputable BookTalk Master
Posts: 9511 09/10/07 00:55:47 BookTalk Owner |
My 3 areas of scientific research would be as follows...
1. alternative fuels I hate to be a cynic, but I'm a little worried that we might not find any alternative fuels in the near future. We could sink a boat load of money and time into the effort and still come up empty handed. But the risks of staying on our current course are tremendous. Do we have a choice? Either we switch to a different source of fuel or we're in a world of trouble soon. So this would be my top concern I suppose. Then again I have only put a few minutes of thought into this question so it will be interesting to see what you guys have to say. I might be missing the boat. 2. space exploration It is risky to have all our eggs in one basket. Humans must move off this planet and venture to new worlds. I'm aware of all of the endless needs we have on this planet, but having those needs and problems isn't enough to warrant focusing all of our efforts on addressing them. Let's do our best to preserve our planet, but let's also get out there and terraform some new ones. 3. human embryonic stem cell research The opportunities here are endless and allowing religious beliefs to interfere with good science wouldn't happen if I was the new Science Research Money Man (TM). |
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medmo |
Re: If you were in charge of funding research... | #2 | ||
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Posts: 12 09/10/07 21:20:30 I can vote now! Yeah! |
Fun question to think about . . . 1. Of course, one of mine has to be medical. I have a sort of vague notion on this one and it really could count as many questions. I think we need to learn more about how to get people to actually live healthier lifestyles. We have all kinds of meds and interventions, but people continue to make very bad decisions with serious consequences. Is it a lack of information? A lack of motivation? A lack of a sense of efficacy? Poor leadership / poor examples? This is going to be key to stemming the diabetes / heart disease epidemic. I would think it could save our country 100's of billions of dollars. 2. I'm with Chris on researching alternative fuels / non-petroleum based fuels for a number of reasons. Chief among them - greenhouse gases and national autonomy. 3. My third is a sort of vague sociological thing. To use a cliche, the knowledge based economy is where we are headed. As long as cheap labor is overseas, manufacturing is going to go there. I think we need to determine how we can most successfully teach our children the skills required of them by the changing economy and society. |
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Niall001 |
Re: If you were in charge of funding research... | #3 | ||
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Posts: 897 09/11/07 14:34:44 Smarty Pants |
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MadArchitect |
Re: If you were in charge of funding research... | #4 | ||
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Posts: 3169 09/11/07 15:27:29 Indisputable BookTalk Master |
Nope, no clarification. Take the question in whatever direction interests you the most.
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Chris OConnor |
Re: If you were in charge of funding research... | #5 | ||
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Indisputable BookTalk Master
Posts: 9511 09/11/07 16:27:05 BookTalk Owner |
You come up with some fun questions, Mad.
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Chris OConnor |
Re: If you were in charge of funding research... | #6 | ||
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Indisputable BookTalk Master
Posts: 9511 09/11/07 16:27:32 BookTalk Owner |
Our new php forum will allow us to have fun polls off in the sidebar all the time.
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- Member Introductions & Journals
- BookTalk News & Development
- Religion, Philosophy & the Arts
- Politics, Current Events & History
- Science, Nature & Technology
- General Discussion & Miscellaneous Topics
- Book Suggestions, Polls, & Reviews
- Additional Book Discussions
- Godless in America: Conversations With an Atheist - by George A. Ricker
- Interventions - by Noam Chomsky
- Religious Expression and the American Constitution - by Franklyn S. Haiman
- Deep Economy: The Wealth of Communities and the Durable Future - by Bill McKibben
- The God Delusion - by Richard Dawkins
- The Third Chimpanzee: The Evolution and Future of the Human Animal - by Jared Diamond
- The Woman in the Dunes - by Abe Kobo
- Evolution vs. Creationism: An Introduction - by Eugenie Scott
- The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals - by Michael Pollan
- I, Claudius: From the Autobiography of Tiberius Claudius, Born 10 B.C., Murdered and Deified A.D. 54 - by Robert Graves
- Breaking the Spell: Religion as a Natural Phenomenon - by Daniel Dennett
- A Peace to End All Peace: The Fall of the Ottoman Empire and the Creation of the Modern Middle East - by David Fromkin
- The Time Traveler's Wife - by Audrey Niffenegger
- The End of Faith: Religion, Terror, and the Future of Reason - by Sam Harris
- Ender's Game - by Orson Scott Card
- The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time - by Mark Haddon
- Value & Virtue in a Godless Universe - by Erik J. Wielenberg
- The March: A Novel - by E.L. Doctorow
- The Ethical Brain - by Michael Gazzaniga
- Freethinkers: A History of American Secularism - by Susan Jacoby
- Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed - by Jared Diamond
- The Battle for God - by Karen Armstrong
- The Future of Life - by Edward O. Wilson
- What is Good? The Search for the Best Way to Live - by A.C. Grayling
- Civilization and It's Enemies: The Next Stage of History - by Lee Harris
- Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space - by Carl Sagan
- How We Believe: Science, Skepticism, and the Search for God - by Michael Shermer
- Looking For Spinoza: Joy, Sorrow, and the Feeling Brain - by Antonio Damasio
- Lies (And the Lying Liars Who Tell Them): A Fair and Balanced Look at the Right - by Al Franken
- The Red Queen: Sex and the Evolution of Human Nature - by Matt Ridley
- The Blank Slate: The Modern Denial of Human Nature - by Stephen Pinker
- Unweaving the Rainbow: Science, Delusion and the Appetite for Wonder - by Richard Dawkins
- Atheism: A Reader - edited by S. T. Joshi
- Global Brain: The Evolution of Mass Mind from the Big Bang to the 21st Century - by Howard Bloom
- The Lucifer Principle: A Scientific Expedition into the Forces of History - by Howard Bloom
- Guns, Germs and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies - by Jared Diamond
- Demon-Haunted World: Science As a Candle in the Dark - by Carl Sagan
- Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee: An Indian History of the American West - by Dee Alexander Brown
- Future Shock - by Alvin Toffler
